Skip for handling brick stacks



Oct. 5, 1937. D. J. sTRlcKLAND l 2,094,762

SKIP FOR HANDLING BRICK STACKS Filed Nov. 9, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 34 jl3e 4| :inventor DAVID ..1A STRICKLAND Oct. 5, 1937. D. J. sTRlcKLAND2,094,762

l l SKIP FOR HANDLING BRICK STACKS Filed Nov. 9, 1956 s sheets-sheet@ il l. i T l l' 27 le 2E L -U-U-I lwentor Oct. 5, 1937. D. J. STRICKLAND2,094,762

SKIP FOR HANDLING BRICK STACKS Filed Nov. 9, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 5Smoentor DAVID J. STRICKLAND Gttorneg Patented Oct. 5, 1937 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE 9 Claims.

During the manufacture and transportation of brick, such` as are used inbuilding operations, the bricks are usually handled by what is known asthe Peniield brick setting machine, or the Neumann grab, and are stackedin units of 1500 bricks, which are known in the trade as stacks orunits, and these units have to be moved in the brick p-lants, loaded fortransportation and delivered to the building sites as units.

In the present method which is in general'use, the mud bricks when takenfrom the mold are conveyed and piled in a certain formation upon -a unitcar, platform or wooden skip, formed with a series of parallel spacedapart pallets in trans verse relation to the rows of bricks; so thatafter a unit of say, 1500 bricks has been formed, this entire unit maybe transported to and from the drying and burning kilns and finallyloaded upon barges, railway car containers, or trucks, by the Penieldsystem which has fingers to support the stacks.

The transporting is now accomplished by these systems or other poweroperated devices attached to cranes or the like, and these devices areprovided with lingers which are inserted between the spaced apartpallets under the units, and thus the unit may be lifted and transportedfrom place to place, but each time that the unit is deposited, be iteither in the brick plant, or upon some transporting medium, such as abarge, railway car, or truck, a support. similar to the original one hasto be provided for the unit to rest upon so that the fingers of thedevice may be removed from the unit. This necessitates a skip or supportfor every unit or stack, which are costly and readily lost or destroyed,as a support has to accompany each stack from the time it is made untilthe bricks are used on the building site. i

There is also a great loss of space in storing and transportation by theuse of these skips or supports, as the units or stacks have to be spacedapart a suicient distance to allow the fingers of the lifting device todescend between each unit and enter between the parallel bars of theskip. Thus a space must be left between each Aunit when placed on abarge or other conveyance, as -well as the space which has to beoccupied by the support, which is equal to an entire course or layer ofbrick, and the space between the units placed in vehicles mustbetemporarily filled with blocking to prevent the units from shifting and`closing jportation.

V:15.5 -i Asthe approximate weight of one' of these up the spaces duringtransf stacks or units of 1500 bricks is about three tons, it requires asubstantial device to lift and transport them satisfactorily, and thusthe fingers of the Peniield device now employed are not satisfactory forthis purpose, as the space required is too great anl objection to itsuse and also on account of the use of temporary supports and the wasteof storage space.

In the use of the Neumann grab, the lower course of the brick unit iscomposed of bricks set edgewise in close proximity to each other and thelower edges of the grab are provided with means whereby when the sidesof the grab are forced towards each other for raising, cornpress andgrab the lower course of bricks, thus providing a support for the bricksthat are stacked thereon, and allowing the unit to be deposited directlyon the floor of a brick container or on the deck of a barge. In thiscase, when the bricks have to be again moved to transport them from thecontainer or barge to a truck, the units cannot be stacked in closeproximity to each other, as several inches have to be left between theunits so that the sides of the grab may descend between the units toagain engage them.

, To overcome these and other objections, I have devised a novel skip inthe form of a clamp designed to be clamped upon the lower course orlayer of brick in the stack or unit so as to convert to the stack, andby it, the stack may be lifted o and transported from the brick yard tothe building site where the clamp is readily removed, leaving the unitresting upon the ground and allowing the clamp to be returned to theyard.

By the use of these clamps, not only the requirement for a temporarysupport for the stack is eliminated, but the overall height of the stackis reduced and no appreciable space is required to be left between thestacks when loading into a conveyance, as no grab or fingers areemployed for transporting.

The object of the invention is to provide a device that will temporarilyconvert the lower layer of a stack of bricks into a platform forsupporting the bricks piled thereon.

Another object of the invention is to provide a detachable, adjustable,and interchangeable means whereby a stack of bricks or the like may belifted and transported without the use of auxiliary supporting devices.

Another object of the invention is to provide .a

' device by which stacked bricks and the like may be raised, lowered,and loaded for transportation A further object of the invention is toprovide.

Y a device that shallV be simple, durable, efficient,

and capable of repeated use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a means for handlingloosely stacked bricks which may be readily attached, detached, orremain `attached to the stack for a period of time.

With these and other objects in View, my in# yention consists in certainnovel construction and combination of parts as'will hereinafter belfully described and claimed and further illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings which form a part hereof, and in which like figures ofreference refer to corresponding parte in .all of the views, and it isunderstood that slight changes may be made without departing from thespirit of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure l is an end elevation of a brick stackror unit showing myhandling clamp attached thereto and the hoisting cables in place, butnot having been clamped thereon. Y

Figure 2 is an enlarged partial detail view part- Y ly in section of theclamping members and one of the compression rods andV friction blocks.

,Figure 3 is a top plan View of the. bottom course of bricks, showingthe arrangement of the same and my handling device secured thereto toform a supporting platform of the bottom course of brick. Y K' Figure 4is a side elevation of one of the clamping membersshowing the nut endsof the clamping rods. Y

Figure 5 is a similar view of the. other clamping member, showing theT-heads ofthe clamping rods, and the `method employed for preventing theclamping rods from turning while being drawn up or released. Y

Figure 6 is a view of the inner face of one of the clamping members,showing the frictional gripping blocks.

YFigure '7 is a partialtcp plan view of the cable spreader that isemployedboth for attachment to the clamping member and to the cranecables forlifting the brick unit. Y

Figure 8 is a side elevation ofthe brick unit with the clamps, spreader,and cables, and showing how the cables tend to hold the stack together.

Referring to the drawings:Y l

The brick stackror unitV is designated by the numeral Iil and the bricksin the bottom course are stacked upon one of their faces with theirsidesV in contact with each other (see Figure 3), and these parallelrows areV divided Vinto four, groupsv I2, i3, M, and I5 which are spacedapart from each other to form the spaces l5 transverse of the stack; theremainingbricks of the stack being piled to bridge over these spaces Iiias shown in Figure l. I

For supporting, handling, and transporting these. stacks `as units, Ihave provided a pair of clamping membersin the form of tha-beamsV YIIand- I1, and within Ythe inner` channelsv of which arersecured a seriesof frictional brickengaging or compressional blocks I8 projectingVbeyond the side of the I-beams IIVand I1, and

are renewably secured therein bythe bolts i3.

For detachablyclamping these V members II and I1 uponV the rowshofbricks I 2, I3, I4,' and I5, comprising the bottom course of the stack,I

Vvthe T-head may pass when inserting or withdrawing the rod 2 from thebrick unit and adjacent to these openings 23 are secured by the rivets24 the stop blocks 25 which prevent the T-head 2I from turning afterhaving'been inserted through the opening 23 and given a onequarter turn.

The other clamping member I1 is formed with a series of clearance holes26 for the threaded end ,n 22 of the rods 20 and rotatably mountedwithin these Yholes 25 are Vanged cap-nuts 21 formed with the internalthreaded body portion for engagement with the threaded end 22-of the rod23, and a collar 28 to engage the outer face of the I-beam I1 and alsohaving a flatted'head for a wrench. If desired, this clamping member I1may have in place of the round holes 25 a series Vof rectangularopenings similar to those designated in the member !I by the numeral-23,so that the rod 23 may be entirely removed from the members II and Itfor shipment.

' Byscrewing up on these nuts 2'I'the clamp rods 2!! will force theclamping members II and l1 towards each other and by the friction blocksI8 will compress each row of bricks in the bottom course, thus forming asolid support or skip out of the bottom course of bricks, the frictionblocks i8 being of resilient nature will compensaterfor inequalities inthe lengths of the rows of bricks in each group I2, i3, I4, and I5, sothat the clamps I I and I1 will securely hold all of the Y bricks.

rthese cables 33 are designed to be attached to a cable spreader 35composedV of the sides 35 and Y ends 31 and 38 secured together by therivets 39 which are provided with the notches 4I to retain them inplace. Y

In the operation of the device, the bricks are originally stacked withthe bottom course arranged in parallel spaced apart groups as shown inFigure 3, this arrangement being easilyY accomplished by stacking thebricks upon a floor or platform suitablyfmarked out to indicate the rowsand spaces.

YThe clamping'members II and I1 are now ,placed one Vupon each side ofthe Stack on the openings 23 in the'clamping member II; the rodsY 2 thenbeing pushed beyond the stops 25, given a quarter turn andpulled Vbackto engage said stops 25, and bring the T-head 2I at right angles totheopening.23 to retain the rods 20 in place.

The nuts 21 are now' tightened on. the rods 2U forcing theclampingmembers II and I1 towards Veach other and the frictionalcompression blocks I8Y areVV thus forced against the ends of each .rowof bricks I2,` I3, I4, and I5, Vcompressing them against each other andthus forming a solid platform or skip of the bottom course of bricks inthe stack to support the others stacked above it.

The stack, as a unit, and as held in the clamping members Il and Il maynow be raised and transported by the cables 33 attached to the studs 29and to a cable spreader 35 suspended by the cables 40 from a crane orother lifting device.

The unit may in this manner be deposited in a barge, and after thusbeing placed, the clamps are removed by loosening the nuts 2l andremoving the rods 20 and clamping members Il and I1 and thus the nextunit or stack may be placed in close proximity to the rst, etc., thusconserving space and enabling more stacks to be stored in a given place,and the handling means at once removed and returned to the dealer orplant for subsequent re-use. Should the units be transported inr afreight car container or by truck, which only holds a few units, thenthe clamps may be left in place until after the unitsv are depositedupon the ground at the building site and are then removed and returnedby the truck or in the container.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a device for handling during its transportation from the brickyard to the place of use a brick stack unit composedof layers of loosebricks superimposed upon each other to form a stack, of meansrcomprisinga pair of grabbing members and transverse adjustable clamping threadedrods' and nuts for clamping together the bricks in the bottom layer toprovide a temporary support for the stack and by which the cntire stackmay be handled as a unit.

2. In a device for handling a brick stack unit during its storage andtransportation from the brick yard to the building, the'lower layer ofwhich is composed of rows of bricks, of means comprising a pair ofclamping members and transverse adjustable compressing threaded rods andnuts for compressing together all of the bricks composing each row toform a support for the bricks stacked thereon, and means carried by saidcompression means forrhandling the entire stack as a unit.

3. A device for handling a brick stack unit during its transportationbetween the brick yard and the building site, the lower layer of whichis formed of parallel rows of bricks, of a pair of clamping membersdisposed in transverse relation to the rows of bricks, means comprisingtransverse adjustable compressing threaded rods and nuts for clampingsaid members upon said rows of bricks to press the bricks in each rowadjacent to the ends of said rows and in transverse relation thereto,resilient gripping members disposed between said clamping members andthe ends of the rows of bricks to engage the same, clamping rodsextending through the spaces between the rows of bricks, and detachablyand adjustably secured to the clamping members.

5. A skip adapted to be detachably secured to a brick stack by which thesame may be loaded and transported from the brick yard to the building,comprising a pair of clamping members, a series of compensatingfrictional grips mounted therein, transverse tie rods detachably andadjustably mounted in said clamping members adapted to compress saidclamping members upon the lower layer of bricks in the stack, and meansattached to said clamping members by which the brick stack may be raisedand lowered.

6. A skip for transporting a brick stack, comprising a. pair of parallelclamping members. I-shaped in cross-section and provided with transverseholes therein, frictional grips mounted in the opposed sides of saidmembers in contact with the end bricks in the lower rows, clamping rodsdisposed between said rows of bricks with their ends extending throughsaid holes and nuts threaded upon said rods for urging said memberstowards each other to clamp and compress the rows of bricks in the lowerlayer of the stack.

'7. A collapsible skip for abrick stack designed to remain thereonduring its transportation between the brick yard and the building siteadapted to exert pressure on the grab course of bricks to enable theentire stack to be lifted as a unit, comprising two longitudinal membersadapted to lie along opposite sides of the grab course, in combinationwith a plurality of members lying in the grab course, each extendingfrom one longitudinal member to the other, adapted to draw thelongitudinal members together to exert the necessary pressure on thebricks.

8. A collapsible skip for a brick stack designed to remain thereonduring its transportation be tween the brick yard and the building sitecomprising rigid members running longitudinally on opposite sides of thegrab brick course of the stack, in combination with equalizing meansbetween the longitudinal members and the bricks, and compression membersextending through the grab course of the stack adapted to draw thelongitudinal members together and create a unitary foundation out of thegrab course.

9. A skip for a brick stack comprising rigid members runninglongitudinally on opposite sides of the grab course within the lines ofthe stack created by the upper j courses, in combination with aplurality of tie rods extending through the grab course adapted tocreate a unitary foundation for the entire stack by compressing thelongitudinal members against the grab course bricks, each tie rod beingadapted to be detached from vone of the longitudinal members by turningon its ax1s.

DAVID J. STRICKLAND.

